Gameguru Mania got a chance to talk with Krzysztof Krawczyk, the co-owner of
Rebelmind, as he talks about Frater, their upcoming action hack&slash
role-playing game set at the end of the 19 century. He also provided us with
four exclusive screenshots.

GGMania: Could you introduce yourself to our readers and tell them a
little bit about what you do on Frater?

Krzysztof Krawczyk: My
name's Krzysztof Krawczyk. I'm a co-owner of Rebelmind. We have been developing
games since 1999 and already have seven games under our belt: Tymoteusz, Grom,
Great Journey, Space Hack and our current project - Frater - to be released this
year.

GGMania: Can you give us a little background on the development team working on
Frater? Is this the same core team with which produced Space Hack?

Krzysztof Krawczyk: The
team creating our games has not changed for many years. This is where our
strength is. The same people have worked on Grom, Space Hack, and Frater. Of
course small changes do happen from time to time, but the core of our team has
stayed the same. We understand each other without words, which makes it possible
to make all the important decisions at the creative level. It also speeds up the
production process.

GGMania: Were you pleased with the reactions that Space Hack received?

Krzysztof Krawczyk: We
are pleased with the media and players response to Space Hack. It got pretty
high ratings in many of its reviews. We have also received a lot of letters from
players who were congratulating us and wishing sufrateress with our new projects. We
were especially happy with the review published by a German site
www.gamecaptain.de (the German version of Space Hack is called Novasphere 13)
whose reactions put us at the very top of the RPG rankings. Overall, we are very
happy with the feedback Space Hack has received.

GGMania: What kind of game is Frater? What were the main objectives you wanted
to achieve in regards to content and gameplay?

Krzysztof Krawczyk:
Frater is a typical hack&slash. Our goal was to create a game whose storyline
and graphics would be very diverse and deeply engrossing. I believe that we have
achieved just that. The game play itself is very fast-paced and entertaining.

GGMania: What can you tell us about the storyline of the game?

Krzysztof Krawczyk: The
plot of the game is set at the end of the 19 century. The Fraternity of
Alchemists takes on a fight with the evil forces trying to control the Earth.
Infernal armies come out to the surface of the Earth through the ancient
constructions called Wells of Souls. The Alchemists select a hunter to
afrateromplish a difficult task of sealing the Wells. People from the Fraternity of
Alchemists assist the player in this very difficult and life-threatening task.

GGMania: How flexible is the character creation system? Will you be able to
choose different genders and appearances? What are the choices available to you
in terms of "class" and how it develops through the course of the game?

Krzysztof Krawczyk: At
the beginning there is an option to choose between three characters. Frater
Simon a mage and an alchemist; Elena - a superb sharp shooter; and Tong Wong - a
natural born martial arts expert from China. Each character represents a very
unique combat style. Thanks to these diverse styles the player can play the game
in three completely different ways.

GGMania: What can you tell us about the enemies in Frater? What sort of foes
will you battle?

Krzysztof Krawczyk: The
enemies possess very diverse skills. Some of them use their claws and fangs in
combat. Other ones use stones and magic to kill their enemies form a distance.
There are also Bosses who visually differ from the rest and who are very
powerful. We have come up with many different types of monsters and created one
of a kind animations for them.

GGMania: Can you describe the combat system?

Krzysztof Krawczyk: The
combat system is based on good models, which have been sufrateressfully used in many
other hack&slash games. We also added the option of using helpers, as well as
defeated and seized demons. Golem is a powerful character animated by magic and
is at the player's beck and call. He is slow, but his hands are unbelievably
strong and can bring many enemies to a standstill. His strength becomes very
obvious as he effortlessly knocks his weaker enemies away. The second Helper is
an old Egyptian weapon - Neferkar - an artificial insect, which circles around
its master and shocks enemies with lethal rays. The player is also able to use
seized demons in combat. Engrossing, well-balanced combat is the main focus in
the game. There will also be a few interesting puzzles whose solutions require
killing a group of monsters.

GGMania: How will the quest system work, how much variety will there be in terms
of different types, and how will you keep them from becoming repetitive or even
stale?

Krzysztof Krawczyk: The
quest system is based on very classical principles. The hero has to bring
something, kill a vicious beast or close a Well of Souls etc. The game is
anything but boring. We have made every effort to make Frater very absorbing.
But the only way to know it for yourself is to play it. Based on initial
previews, our game is what we were hoping it to be.

GGMania: Are the levels randomly created each time you play? Will there be any
kinds of random elements in terms of monsters and items and such? And what kind
of replayability is there in the game?

Krzysztof Krawczyk: We
have intentionally chosen not to include random difficulty levels in the game,
as we intended for the player to fully experience the climate of the plot.
That's why we decided that locations in the game should stay the same. There is,
however, an element of randomization and great diversity in the objects used in
the game. The Player never knows what he/she is about to find and what kind of a
weapon he/she is about to use in the next confrontation.

GGMania: What can you tell us about the graphic engine for the game?

Krzysztof Krawczyk: Soon
after completing our previous game - Space Hack - we got down to modifying the
game engine. We have improved the graphics display capability, which has
resulted in greatly improved visual quality of our games. We have also modified
the map editor, which has enabled us to create more complex and sophisticated
terrains. We also wanted to be able to build dynamic cut-scenes, which would not
hinder the player's control over the game. We have been able to afrateromplish all
our goals in this respect and feel that this is one of Frater's real strengths.
We wanted to match the system requirements for Space Hack and are happy that we
have afrateromplished just that.

GGMania: Will Frater feature a multi-player component? If so, what are you
looking at for multiplayer options? Are there plans for cooperative,
competitive, or other modes?

Krzysztof Krawczyk: The
game was created with a single-player in mind.
GGMania: We've already had plenty of RPG games on PC and there are a number in
production, how will Frater stand out from the crowd?

Krzysztof Krawczyk: The
climate of our new game makes it very unique. The world we have created in
Frater is original enough to make pausing this game extremely hard for many
players. Another difference between Frater and other RPGs is the unbelievably
fast pace of its gameplay. Those who get to know Frater's secrets won't be able
to stop playing.

GGMania: At the moment, what is the current status of the game's progress
and when do you expect the game to be released? Do you have a publisher for
North America?

Krzysztof Krawczyk: We
are currently working on the final stages of the game to be completed by the end
of August. We are in the process of negotiations with publishers, but haven't
made a final agreement with any publisher in North America yet.

GGMania: Thank you for taking the time to answer these questions. Finally, is
there anything else you wish to say about Frater?

Krzysztof Krawczyk: We
invite everyone to try our game and hope that it provides hours of great fun and
excitement. Thank you.

was gonna read the interview but when he called his game another typical hack n slash i stopped reading...the last thing a dev would want is to call his game typical cuz that means nothing new, been there done that, why do it again.